The Righthand Corridor
by Eigwayne
Summary: A young Percy Weasley finally gets to go to Hogwarts. But can he stand it, with the Slytherins, an exuberant roommate, a mysterious disappearing hallway, and worst of all, getting points off? A prePotter Percy fic. On hold, updates sporadic at best.
1. The Hogwarts Express

The Right-hand Corridor

A Harry Potter fic by Elise

Rating: Well, this particular chapter's a G...  
Warnings: Um… chibi-Oliver?  
Summary: Percy Weasley finally gets to go to Hogwarts. But can he stand it, with the Slytherins, an exuberant roommate, a mysterious disappearing hallway, and -worst of all- getting points off?

Percy's school career, pre-Potter. What kind of trouble do future Head Boys get into? What did Oliver do before he could be on the Quidditch team? This particular story is Percy and Oliver's first year, where they start classes and try to have an Adventure without getting caught.

Chapter One is the Hogwarts Express, in which we meet some of the characters, the twins leave Percy a present, and Scabbers snores a lot.

****

Part 1- Hogwarts Express

Percy Weasley adjusted his glasses nervously. In front of him was Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters and the Hogwarts Express. The red steam engine was exactly the same as it had always been. Only this year, it was HIM going to Hogwarts. Not Bill, not Charlie. Percy.

"Ready, Percy?" his mother asked. Although it was only the two of them today (a neighbour was watching the youngest four, and good luck to her!), they managed to get his trunk onto the train and into an empty compartment safely.

"Thanks, Mum," he said as he stepped off the train for a moment, to see her off.

Molly Weasley beamed at her young son. "Owl me as soon as you can," she said. "I can't wait to hear which House you'll be in!" She hugged him close and kissed his cheek before he could avoid it.

"Yes, Mum. I will." He hopped aboard the train quickly, before she could tell him to wash behind his ears every day or anything like that. He did catch her last comment, made to another parent.

"My third boy's off. Oh, I could cry. Oh dear! I have to get home before the twins kill the sitter!"

****

Aboard the train, Percy settled into his compartment. He sighed. His mother may be proud of him, but she also expected the best. His older brothers had both been excellent in their fields. Bill had been Head Boy. Charlie was Captain of the Quidditch team. Percy was only fair at Quidditch and preferred books to brooms. So he had already decided to shoot for being the top student.

He checked his pockets. His pet rat, Scabbers, was safe asleep in one, and he pulled his Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) from another. It was never too early to start studying.

"Hey," a voice called from the door of the compartment. "Are, um, these seats taken?"

"No," Percy said as he looked up.

"Cool." The speaker was a young boy, probably his own age, with brown hair and an open smile. "Oliver Wood," he announced as he held out his hand. Percy set his book down on an empty seat and shook his hand shyly.

"Percy Weasley. Hello."

"Weasley? Wasn't there a Weasley on one of the Quidditch teams at Hogwarts?"

"My older brother, Charlie," Percy admitted. If Oliver was going to talk about Charlie the whole time-

"Yeah, that's it! I heard he could've played for England."

-he'd throw him out a window.

"What's he doing instead?"

Percy ground his teeth, but answered, "He went to Romania, to study dragons."

"Wow. Almost as cool as Quidditch. Do you play?"

Do you shut up? Percy wondered, a bit cruelly. "Not really. I'm not very good."

"That's too bad. I bet you could be. You look like a Seeker. Or a Chaser."

At least he wasn't talking about his older brothers anymore... Percy decided to be social. "When we played at home, I was a Chaser. We let Ginny be Seeker, because she's the youngest, and whines if we don't let her." 

"Your family's big enough for a Quidditch team?" Oliver's eyes widened.

"There's seven of us kids, when Charlie and Bill are home. Most of the time, we play two on two or something. But I'd rather read. Have you looked at the textbooks yet? They're fascinating!"

"Naw. Although I did crack open the Fungus one, one night when I couldn't sleep. I was out like a light spell."

"What did you do if you didn't study?" Percy was genuinely intrigued. What DID people his age do when they weren't reading? Surely not everyone made bombs or whatever it was the twins did when they weren't wreaking general havoc.

"I flew mostly. You know, 'cause first years aren't allowed their own broomsticks. Monstrously unfair, that. So we can only fly in class." Oliver sighed heavily. "I miss my Comet already."

"So you really like Quidditch?"

"Like? It's my favourite thing in the world!" He launched into a spirited discourse on Quidditch that made Percy grin. But when Oliver insulted the Cannons, it became more of an argument.

"You've got nothing, Percy. They haven't placed higher than fifth in the last four years, and they keep getting worse."

"It's not the winning, though! They've got more spirit than any other team."

"Spirit doesn't catch the Snitch!"

"You don't get it, Oliver-"

The compartment door slid open suddenly, revealing three boys. "Could you shout any louder?" the tallest snapped. "I'm not sure the prefects heard you up at the other end of the train."

"What do you care?" Oliver snorted.

"You're disturbing Roland's beauty nap," another giggled. He was skinny with a high-pitched voice.

"Shut up, Peter," the first said. He paused. "Marcus, look at this, will ya?" He gestured to Oliver and Percy.

The last boy came forward. He was, quite simply, huge, with a powerful build and long arms.

"A bloody Weasley!" he barked. "Is it true what they say?"

Percy flushed. He knew full well what this Marcus was referring to. "In my experience," he said bitterly, "what 'they' say is often a white lie at best, and a glaring fallacy the rest of the time."

Peter looked truly perplexed, but Marcus and Roland managed to look only slightly confused.

"C'mon," Marcus growled. "Let's leave the nerd and his Quid-head friend to their tiff." He led his friends off, slamming the compartment door closed- but not before they heard Peter mumble, "I wouldn't talk about Quid-heads if I were you, Marcus...."

Oliver immediately started giggling. "Classic! You really blinded them with big words, Perce!"

"Morons, the lot of them," Percy declared, brushing off one of his sleeves and looking pleased with himself.

"I have a question, though... What DO they say about Weasleys?" The redhead stiffened, and glared at Oliver through his glasses. Although his face was red to his ears, that look could have curdled milk, and was more than enough to make Oliver regret saying anything.

"Ah, sorry. It was bad of me to ask. Only idiots listen to rumours anyways," he muttered. "Just, forget I said anything...." He sank back into his seat as Percy turned to stare out the window.

He watched the scenery for a moment before he spoke.

"It's alright, Oliver. You couldn't know. It's just that... even though my father works at the Ministry, we're not... as rich as some other families. And all of us, down to the last cousin, is red-haired and freckled and from a huge family. We're somewhat famous for it."

"Oooh. I see." Oliver looked thoughtful. "But I don't see anything wrong with that."

"Well, some other wizarding families look down on us. Those jerks are probably from one of those families." He scowled.

"Yeah, I live near the Bulstrode's. They're convinced they're Natures gift to wizarding. And that girl of theirs is the biggest snot to walk the earth."

"Sounds like Lucius Malfoy. He hates my father because he defends the Muggles."

"I've heard of him. Somebody's got to, with people like him around." They snickered.

"So," Oliver started. "Did your older brothers tell you anything about Hogwarts?"

"A little bit. Nothing useful. 'Mind the steps.' 'Don't get caught in the hallways late at night.' 'Stay on the teachers' good sides.' Stuff like that, that anyone with a lick of sense would know."

"Oh." He sounded disappointed. "I was hoping you'd have some idea of what to expect. You know, for when we got there."

"No, My brothers thought it was funny to NOT tell me, and then tease me about it." Percy huffed at this. All summer it had been 'Wait 'til you see, Perce! Nope, can't tell you. It'll ruin the surprise,' from Charlie. He'd almost been glad when he left for Romania. And Bill's letters were just as bad. 'Nothing as bad as curse-breaking' indeed!

"What time is it?" Oliver asked suddenly.

"A little past noon, I think," Percy answered. "Why?"

He grinned sheepishly. "I'm hungry."

"Oh, well, my mother made me sandwiches this morning. We can split them now, if you'd like."

"Really? That's great of you, Percy. Thanks."

Percy pulled the bag of sandwiches from his trunk. "I think they're corned beef. That seems to be Mum's favorite- Oh!" He'd opened the bag. Big Mistake.

"It stinks!"

"No kidding!"

"Quick, out the window!"

"Isn't there a law against littering?"

"Who cares?! Just get that out of here!" Oliver opened a window and quickly threw the bag out it. "Ugh. What happened?" He waved the air in front of his nose.

"I don't know. Mum's a really good cook. She knows the difference between corned beef and skunk cabbage." Percy suddenly sighed. "The twins. Of course. How could it be anyone else?"

"The twins?"

"Fred and George. My little brothers. They think they're funny." He made a sour face. Yeah, they thought they were funny. So did everyone else, except him. He was their favourite target.

"How many brothers do you have?" Oliver asked as he stopped fanning the air.

"Five. And a sister."

"That really is enough for a whole Quidditch team! That's cool! Except the skunk cabbage part," he added quickly. "I don't have any at all."

"Want a few? You can have some of mine."

"No thanks. From what I've seen, I don't think I'd want yours."

"That's the problem. Neither do I."

They laughed about that for a while. When the witch with the snack cart came by (wrinkling her nose at the residual skunky smell in their compartment), they pooled on Chocolate Frogs and a box of Every Flavour Beans. Fully half of Oliver's Frogs came with the Morgana card, but he did get one with a Chinese witch, whose name he didn't even try to pronounce, due to the large number of X's in it. Percy got one that he'd had an eye out for, though.

"Medea! Ron and I have been looking for her!" He caught Olivers confused look. "My youngest brother. I taught him how to read, so I've been helping him with his collection. I'm going to owl this with my letter to Mum." And he slipped it into a pocket.

"Oh! Scabbers!" He pulled the old rat from his pocket and placed him on one of the empty seats. "Wake up, Scabbers! Here's a Chocolate Frog for you!" Scabbers opened one eye and sat up lazily, but took the treat.

"Did he just yawn?"

"Probably. Scabbers likes to sleep, and I did just wake him up."

"My parents don't trust me with a pet," Oliver said rather sulkily. "They said I need to prove I'm responsible enough before they'll let me get an owl. Whatever that means."

"I don't know about owls, but taking care of a pet is nothing after the twins."

****

The rest of the afternoon was quiet, just the sounds of the train and their voices as the boys talked. Mostly about Quidditch, which was Oliver's area of expertise and really the only thing he cared about, although he was curious about what it was like to have brothers. ("Do they bite?" "Only sometimes.") The serenity was only interrupted by Scabber's squeaky snoring and the occasional "Yech!" when one of them got a particularly nasty Every Flavour Bean.

They switched into their robes during another discussion of the Chudley Cannons. Percy desperately hoped that Oliver didn't notice that his robes were taken up and in. It was all too obvious to him, but Oliver kept chatting happily.

"I'm telling you, Percy, they're a lost cause...."

After the announcement that they were arriving at Hogwarts soon, Percy tucked Scabbers safely into his pocket and followed Oliver into the corridor to join the other milling students.


	2. The Sorting

The Right-hand Corridor

A Harry Potter fic by Elise

Rating: G. Maybe PG with the action scenes at the end, but I haven't written those yet.  
Warnings: Um… chibi-Oliver?  
Summary: Percy Weasley finally gets to go to Hogwarts. But can he stand it, with the Slytherins, an exuberant roommate, a mysterious disappearing hallway, and -worst of all- getting points off?

And because I forgot to say last chapter, Parts 1 & 2 are dedicated to linnetjo, who so thoughtfully beta-ed. Sorry I haven't written in so long! Life kinda gets in the way.

The Right Hand Corridor  
Part 2- The Sorting

In which the boys are Sorted, people with perfect pitch are tortured, and the first year Gryffindors get a brief introduction to David Bowie.

*****

The first year students huddled on a dark platform after the train stopped. Suddenly, a lamp appeared, high over their heads and a voice called, "Firs' years! Firs' years over here!"

"That's us," Percy whispered to Oliver, grateful for some direction.

The man gathering the students was huge, with a wild beard and hair to match. "Over here, now! Anymore firs' years? Firs' years, follow me!" He led them up a narrow path, many of them tripping in the darkness. Percy heard an "Ow!" from behind him, and glanced back to see a small boy sporting a new fat lip being helped up. One girl shrieked as she slipped up above them, but the large man caught her and was murmuring soothingly to her.

"It's all right. Not much farther now..." The girl sniffed, but seemed to be calming down.

Embarrassingly, Percy was the next one to trip on a particularly steep patch of ground. Oliver grabbed his wrist and helped him up.

"Thanks," Percy breathed, checking his pocket for Scabbers. He was still asleep.

"No prob." He grinned.

The path opened when it reached the shore of a lake. Across the lake on a mountain was a huge castle. The windows in all it's towers shone with a warm light that made the lake below glitter.

"It's more amazing in person than in the books," Percy said in awe, "and it was absolutely magnificent in Hogwarts, A History."

"Amazing," Oliver agreed simply. His hand still hung loosely from Percy's wrist.

A chuckle came from next to them. "Yeh're right there," the large man said to them. "Never heard truer words mehself."

"Thank you, Mr.... er..."

"Hagrid. Now get ter a boat. We're not there yet." He chuckled again before he called out "No more'n four to a boat, everyone!"

Oliver finally let go of Percy's wrist and they claimed a boat. They were joined by a rather unfriendly girl with a stuck-up expression and a tiny boy with huge, blue eyes.

"Everyone in? Good. FORWARD!"

At Hagrid's call, the boats started to glide across the lake towards the castle. After passing through a low curtain of ivy ("Everyone, head's down!") and a long tunnel, they reached the dock and climbed from the boats. One boy collapsed onto the beach and started mumbling about "sweet, sweet land."

"Everyone ready?" Hagrid asked. The students all stood up straight and nodded. "Let's go then." He led them up a path to a huge door, where he knocked three times.

The door opened to reveal a tall woman with a stern expression. Percy adjusted his glasses self-consciously, noting how her square frames rested perfectly straight on her nose.

Hagrid grinned and said, "The firs' years. They're still a little nervous, Professor McGonagall."

"They'll be fine, Hagrid. Thank you." She turned to the students. "Follow me." And then she led them through a hallway that could've held the Burrow several times over, additions and all. They finally ended up in a small chamber, where Professor McGonagall turned to them again.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. Before you join everyone in the Great Hall for the start of term banquet-" Oliver's stomach grumbled as if on cue. "-you need to be Sorted into your Houses." Two girls on the other side of Oliver paled and grasped each others hands. "The Sorting is one of our most important ceremonies. While you're here, your House will be your family." Percy groaned inwardly. He hated that word sometimes. "You will attend classes, sleep in the dormitories, and spend time in the common room with the rest of your House.

"The Houses are Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. Each has it's own great history that we sincerely hope you will be part of. Your triumphs here will earn your House points. Rule breaking will lose them. At the end of the year, the House with the greatest number of points receives the House Cup, a very honorable award to that House. I'm sure you'll all be a credit to your Houses.

"You have a few moments to smarten yourselves up before the Sorting Ceremony in the Great Hall. Please take the opportunity." She glanced at the boy with the split lip. Percy thought he saw a flicker of concern in her eyes.

"I'll return shortly. And for Heaven's sake, wait quietly!"

After she left, Oliver whispered, "Did any of your brothers say anything about the Sorting?"

"Only that it hurt much," Percy muttered. He straightened his glasses again. The boy with the fat lip was rolling his eyes while one of the girls tended it.

"Great," Oliver said forlornly. "I hate going into things unprepared."

"Me too."

Percy had smoothed his hair and adjusted his robes twice when Professor McGonagall returned.

"Alright, everyone," she said, looking slightly- just slightly- happier than before. "I'm glad that you all decided to wait QUIETLY, unlike last years students. Now form a line. The ceremony is about to start."

Percy stood obediently between Oliver and the boy with the fat lip, who glared at the girl who'd tried to help him. She huffed at him.

They followed Professor McGonagall into the Great Hall- an enormous room with long tables, uncountable candles, and a ceiling that Percy knew from his books was enchanted to reflect the sky outside.

"Amazing," Oliver whispered. Percy agreed whole-heartedly.

Professor McGonagall led them near the teacher's table, but in front of it so they stood facing the students. Then she placed a simple stool in front of them and a battered wizard's hat on top of that.

The room was silent. Then, one of the girls on the other side of Oliver squeaked as a tear in the hat opened, and it sang.

"Open your ears  
But don't close your eyes!  
And listen to me-  
Among hats, the most wise.

For it's my job  
To say where you belong  
And where you're best  
When you try me on.

Which House for you?  
That's what I tell!  
In Ravenclaw,  
Let your intellect swell.

Dear Hufflepuff!  
Such loyal friends!  
And Gryffindors!  
Such courage lends!

At Slytherin,  
Ambition is key.  
But nowhere, you'll find,  
Is a brighter cap than me!"

The Hall burst into cheers and laughter.

"That's the worst song I've ever heard in my entire life," Oliver muttered.

"When I call your name," Professor McGonagall said to the first years, a long parchment in her hand, "step forward, and then you'll try on the hat and sit on the stool to be Sorted." She unrolled the parchment and began. "Appleby, George."

"I hate that name," Percy murmured.

"Appleby?" Oliver asked.

"No, George. One of the twins is named George."

The hat suddenly shouted "HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Brudrick, Bethany." The snotty-looking girl from their boat became a Slytherin.

"Calvin, Jane" became the first Gryffindor, and Percy got to see his brothers and parents old House's residents. They looked like a good-enough bunch.

Unfortunately, that got Percy thinking. Which House will I be in? Will I be the fifth Weasley in Gryffindor? What if I am? What if I'm not? What will Mum say?

He was only vaguely aware of the rest of the ceremony, thanks to Oliver's occasional commentary.

"That's the third one in a row to Ravenclaw. They've got a lot of C's. Hey! It's the kid from our boat! Go get 'em, Adam! Look, it's one of those jerks from the train. Think McGonagall would be mad if I booed?"

The trollishly large boy who'd called Percy a nerd turned out to be "Flint, Marcus" and became a Slytherin. His friends, Peter Landry and Roland Nott, joined him. The poor boy with the split lip went between them somewhere, and "McLeary, Daniel" became a Hufflepuff.

"Wow. The new Hufflepuffs are all boys, and the new Gryffindors are all girls," Oliver mused as Mary Quentin became the fourth girl to sit at the Gryffindor table. Soon, it was down to just Oliver and Percy, as Joseph Townsend was declared a Ravenclaw.

"Weasley, Percy."

There was a small murmur from the Gryffindor's direction as Percy stepped forward. His legs felt weak and he was certain that the butterflies in his stomach were having a party, but he stood up tall and walked to the hat without straightening his glasses once.

He pulled the battered hat over his head and slipped onto the stool. The inside of the hat fell over his eyes, and was very, very dark.

"Another Weasley, huh?"

Percy nearly fell off the stool in surprise when the voice spoke in his ears. He'd heard the hat call out names, but he had no idea it talked to them!

The hat ignored him. "Quite a head you've got there, but you're very ambitious. Your first day and you're already shooting for Head Boy? You'd make an excellent Slytherin."

Two thoughts came to Percy then, one on top of the other- 'Mum would kill me!' and 'They'll eat me alive!'

"Really? I wouldn't be so sure... No, you're right. They would eat you alive. But you could do well in any House.... I think you've got a lot of heart, though.

"Besides, your heart is set on GRYFFINDOR!"

Percy started when the hat screamed aloud, but luckily didn't fall or knock over the stool like one of the Hufflepuffs had. He placed the hat back on the stool and walked over to the Gryffindor table calmly as Oliver was called up. He sat next to an older boy and a silvery figure that he guessed was Gryffindor's resident ghost, whom his family had actually deigned to tell him a little about.

"Hello," he said politely, even though his butterflies hadn't gone away. He glanced up at Oliver, who had just sat down on the stool, Sorting Hat over his eyes.

"Hi," said the older boy. "Welcome to Gryffindor. I'm Bran Hunter." Percy shook his hand. He was about fifteen or sixteen, and had a silver badge on his robes. He gestured to the ghost. "And this is our ghost-"

"Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington," the ghost interrupted. "At your service."

"But we call him Nearly-Headless Nick," Bran said and winked. Nick sighed in resignation. They'd obviously been through their routine before, with the young girls sitting across from them.

Percy grinned nervously, and glanced up at Oliver again. He sat very stiffly, his fists clenched. It looked like he was arguing with the hat.

"Your friend?" Bran asked, catching his glance.

"Sort of. Yeah, I guess."

"Don't worry. Even if he is in a different House, you'll see him. A lot of the lessons are doubled with the other Houses-"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Oh. I guess you will be together. That's good. Otherwise you'd be the only boy in Gryffindor, and that would probably be lonely."

"Hey Percy," Oliver said as he joined them, grinning.

"Hi Oliver."

"I'm glad I got into Gryffindor with you. That stupid hat tried to put me in one of the other Houses, but I told it I couldn't leave you alone. Then-"

"Oliver!" Percy snapped, reddening. Bran and Nearly-Headless Nick were grinning.

"But here I am!" Oliver finished stubbornly. "Hello."

Just then, a man with a long silver beard stood up at the Head Table.

"Professor Dumbledore," Bran whispered. "The Headmaster."

"Good evening, everyone. Welcome to Hogwarts. You may now pig out," and he sat back down. Everyone clapped.

"That was the best speech I've ever heard," Oliver declared, and smiled broadly as all the plates on the table instantly filled with food.

They all ate happily, chatting with each other and the girls across from them.

"What's your badge for?" Jane Calvin asked Bran suddenly. "Are you a prefect?"

"Indeed I am," Bran said, patting the badge with it's big P. "That means if you have trouble with anything, you can come to me. Or to Tony Scarborough down there. He's a good guy." He pointed to a small, dark boy with a silver badge on his chest as well. "Tony's one of our sixth year prefects, and we're all hoping he makes Head Boy next year."

Percy smiled. That would be him someday, sitting tall and straight and looking so much more knowledgeable than everyone else, with the shiny badge to prove it.

"Who's the Head Boy this year?" he asked anxiously.

"Mark Penhill. See him over at the Ravenclaw table, sitting next to that first year girl with the curls?"

"The one all the girls are staring at?" Oliver asked, his nose wrinkled in distaste.

"That's him," Bran said, also with a sour face. "The girls love him. He's handsome, intelligent, and could've played Quidditch. Didn't want to, though."

"He's nutters, then," Oliver said solemnly.

"I want to know who the Head GIRL is," Missy Green butted in. She was another first year sitting next to Jane.

"Laura Farthington," Bran said immediately. "She's not bad- for a Slytherin."

By dessert, talk had turned to Quidditch.

"Don't get your hopes up this year, Oliver," Nearly-Headless Nick said mournfully. "This year's team is, well, green. Half the team graduated since Percy's brother Charlie. He was a fine Seeker."

Percy flinched. _Please don't talk about Charlie_....

"Anyways," Bran added, "the captain's a sixth year, but it's his first year as Captain. Kurt Cohen," and he pointed him out. Percy didn't particularly care, since they weren't talking about Charlie.

"Planning on joining the team?" Missy asked Oliver.

"The second we get here next year!" he told her excitedly. "Do you play?"

Missy and Jane both shook their heads negatively.

"That's too bad. Percy doesn't either." Percy flushed a little. "I asked on the train. Do you think the other girls in our year play?"

"You'd have to teach Sara," Jane informed him. "She's a Muggle-born. I don't know about Mary or Sally."

"None of you are any fun!"

Percy was just about to ask Bran about classes when Professor Dumbledore stood up again. He waited calmly when the Hall broke out in applause.

_I want to be the type of man that gets an ovation just for standing up! _Percy thought as he clapped.

"Thank you all! That was beautiful!" Dumbledore said, beaming. "Now, I have a few announcements for you all!

"First years, please note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all students. That is why it's called the FORBIDDEN Forest." He looked right at the Gryffindor table, where bunch of second years at the other end from Percy cringed. Dumbledore grinned as he continued. "Professor Sprout has asked me to relay that the next person molesting the Whomping Willow will be dealt with severely, by her as well as the tree. Our dear Mr. Filch would like me to remind you that magic-use between classes is also forbidden. That means you!" He didn't look at anyone in particular, but seemed to include them all.

"And now, the School Song."

"Oh no," Bran groaned. Several of the teachers looked strained.

A ribbon shot from Dumbledore's wand, forming into words. "Everyone sing along to your favorite song!"

_Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts_...

The noise was terrible, but Percy was glad; it drowned out his own voice. He noticed Bran flinched several times in the first line alone. Oliver belted out the song, but Sara Proctor, the Muggle-born Gryffindor, was one of the last done. She had a very pretty voice.

"Beautiful," Dumbledore said, seeming a bit choked up. "Positively beautiful. That's just the thing. Sweet dreams everyone!"

Bran stood up shakily. "Follow me," he said to the first years, sounding a little weak.

"What's wrong?" Percy asked. He noticed Bran flinch again when he spoke.

"I have perfect pitch," the older boy explained. "I hear every little mistake in that song every year. It's torture, absolute torture."

"That's awful!" Sara said.

"You were a saving grace, though," he told her as he led them through a doorway that had been hidden behind a sliding panel. "Lovely voice. I hope you'll take lessons." Sara beamed. "What was that song you were singing to?"

"Oh," she blushed. "That was an old David Bowie song, Lady Stardust."

They all paused to stare at her blankly.

"David Bowie? He's very famous- in the Muggle world." There was a chorus of "Ooh"s. "Really, I can't believe you wizards sometimes... Not knowing David Bowie..." she muttered as they started off again.

"Percy, though..." Bran said softly.

"What?" Percy said quickly, anxious to please.

"Could you do me a big favor? Don't sing near me. Ever."

Oliver snickered as Percy turned red. "Shut up, Oliver!" he snapped. "You weren't so great yourself!"

"That's an understatement," muttered Bran.

It was Percy's turn to snicker.

"Ah, here we are!" Bran said happily as they reached a painting of a very large woman in a pink dress.

"Password?" the painted Fat Lady asked.

"Griffon feathers," Bran announced. The Fat Lady's portrait swung open, revealing a hole in the wall. "Go ahead through." They entered into a room filled with armchairs.

Once in the common room, Bran shooed the girls through one door and Percy and Oliver through another. "G'night!" he called. "See you in the morning!"

The boys climbed stairs until they reached a doorway. It opened into a cozy room with tow beds, both of them four-posters with thick red curtains. Oliver's trunk sat at the end of one, while Percy's was at the other. His Standard Book of Spells rested on top.

"Oh no!" he cried. "I can't believe I forgot my book!" He grabbed it and hugged it close. Scabbers squeaked in protest. "Sorry, Scabbers."

Oliver flopped onto his bed and groaned in delight. "Soft..."

Percy rolled his eyes as Oliver wiggled around, trying to put on his pajamas without getting up. He settled Scabbers on one pillow and quickly changed into his own pajamas, a slightly large, almost violently blue set that had been Bill's.

"Night, Perce," Oliver yawned.

"Good night, Oliver," he returned as he settled in. They both fell asleep immediately, completely worn out after the feast and all the walking before that. Oliver was sprawled all over, but Percy was neatly curled up, Scabbers snoring on a pillow and his Standard Book of Spells in hand.


	3. The First Week

The Right-hand Corridor

A Harry Potter fic by Elise

Rating: G. Maybe PG with the action scenes at the end, but I haven't written those yet.  
Warnings: Um… chibi-Oliver?  
Summary: Percy Weasley finally gets to go to Hogwarts. But can he stand it, with the Slytherins, an exuberant roommate, a mysterious disappearing hallway, and -worst of all- getting points off?

****

The Right Hand Corridor  
Part 3- The First Week

In which Percy and Oliver adjust to Hogwarts by getting horribly lost.

****

Percy sat up quickly. "What-" Then he remembered that it hadn't been an explosion or screaming or the ghoul in the attic that had woken him up. It had been a soft thud and an "Ow!" from Oliver.

"Are you okay?" he called.

"Yeah. I just hit my head on the bedpost. I forgot where I was, for a minute."

"So did I. I was wondering why there weren't any explosions…"

"You make it sound like your home is a madhouse!" Oliver laughed.

Percy grumbled. "It is."

"I'm hungry! Let's get breakfast!" Oliver announced suddenly. He bounded out of bed and changed quickly. Percy followed suit, except for the bounding part.

Scabbers was still sound asleep, so it was just Percy and Oliver who got lost on the way to the Hall for breakfast. They ran into an older girl, however, who helped them out.

"I'm going down myself," she explained as she walked with them. "I promised Robert I'd meet him there." And she smiled, a funny distant smile that Percy had seen his mother get when she was remembering something sweet his father had done. Oliver recognized the look as well, because he made a gagging noise. Percy agreed. He hated it when girls got lovey-dovey.

Oliver and Percy had already started eating when the first-year girls joined them.

"Hey, Janey," Oliver said. "I think your sister walked us down this morning." They looked remarkably similar, with straight blonde hair and green eyes.

"Did she? And did she talk about Robert the whole way?"

"You bet!" They made faces at that.

"Wait until you're their age, little ones," chuckled a new voice with a slight accent. It was Tony Scarborough, the sixth year prefect. "When you're fourteen too, you'll understand."

"I don't think I ever will," Oliver insisted. "Who wants to sit around and kiss girls when you could be out doing something? Like Quidditch!"

"Oh, but they do play!" the prefect laughed. "That's our Keeper and Seeker over there!"

"No wonder Bran's worried about the team," Oliver muttered.

"I want to know what our schedule is," Missy Green interrupted. She wasn't bad, but she was they type who let you know what she wanted, when she wanted it, and expected to get it. She was really quite spoiled, actually.

"I have it right here," Tony said.

"Then why are you wasting time talking about girls?!" Percy said, a little too eagerly. Missy and the others glared at him.

Percy ignored them, and eagerly snatched the class listing from Tony as he handed them out. Tony raised his eyebrows, but didn't say anything.

"Oh, Charms first today!"

"Yeah, but I bet History of Magic is a real snoozer."

"I LIKE history!"

"Transfiguration sounds like fun."

"Herbology on Wednesdays…."

"I can't wait to try Potions!" The older Gryffindors flinched.

"What? What's so bad about Potions?" Percy said, jumping to Sara's defense.

"It's taught by Professor Snape," said a fourth-year.

"He HATES us," a second-year practically wailed.

"Nonsense! A teacher wouldn't be that biased to hate a whole House!"

"It's true," Tony said, putting a hand on Percy's shoulder. "Snape is in charge of i volgari serpenti-"

"The Slytherins," Bran clarified as he reached the table. "What about them now?"

"We're telling the firsties about Snape," an older girl put in.

"Professor Snape," Bran corrected idly as he sat down. "Yes, watch out for him. He doesn't like Gryffindor very much, so he tries to take points off us more than the others."

"But… That's not fair!" Percy protested.

"That's the way it is," Bran said sadly. "Just answer his questions, stay out of his way, and don't blow up your potions. Have some eggs?"

****

Charms went well, although Professer Flitwick remembered Bill and Charlie well, and beamed so brightly when he said "Weasley" that Percy groaned. History of Magic was incredibly boring, but he was determined to make it through, not that Oliver's drooling on the desk helped.

When Professor Binns ended the class, Percy poked Oliver a few times to wake him up.

"-got the Snitch! We won- oh, hi Percy."

"Don't 'Hi Percy' me!" he snapped. "You slept through History of Magic!"

"Yeah, well…." Oliver had the good grace to look embarrassed. "Can I copy your notes?"

"No!" Percy sounded scandalized at the very thought, like Oliver had just asked to read his journal or something.

"But I drooled on mine!"

"Whose fault is that?" Percy shoved his thing into his bag and headed out the door.

Oliver scurried after him. "C'mon, Percy!"

"Be quiet! I'm trying to remember the way back."

"Left at the statue of the dancing cow, I think."

"Yes, but after that…" They walked for a bit. A long bit.

"I think we're lost," Percy announced after they'd been walking for ten minutes with no familiar landmarks.

"Me too. Well, everyone gets lost the first couple days, right? All we need to do is find someone and ask them."

"Yes, but finding someone will be the hard part."

They were in an elegant corridor with a faded red carpet. The ceiling was arched, and the walls had a dark paneling. The corridor branched in front of them.

"Who ever heard of a corridor that branches off?" Percy fussed.

"Dunno. But I don't like it… The right side looks… off." The right hand branch was somewhat darker, while the left hand was illuminated, mostly by a painting of sunflowers that actually shone.

"Let's take the left."

Oliver nodded. "I wonder how late we are for lunch?"

"Lunch?! At this rate, we'll be late for Defense Against the Dark Arts!" A note of hysteria crept into Percy's voice. "We're going to be late for class…" he moaned, stopping dead in his tracks.

"C'mon Percy! Keep walking. We'll make it. Just… don't stop." He grabbed Percy's wrist and started pulling him forward.

****

What felt like hours later-

"WHERE THE HELL ARE WE!?"

"Percy!" Oliver hissed.

"Who's there," a voice called. It was Hagrid, carrying a bucket of what looked like snails.

"Oh Hagrid thank goodness someone's found us thank you thank you thank you look Oliver now we can get to Defense Against the Dark Arts and I won't miss class and they won't have to send an owl home after all!" Percy hugged Oliver's arm in relief.

"'Ello there," Hagrid said, eyeing the hysterical Percy.

"Hi Hagrid," Oliver said cheerfully. "We're lost!"

"Are yeh? Well, let's get yeh straightened out, er…"

"Oliver. Oliver Wood. And this incoherent mess is my roommate Percy Weasley." Percy started at the sound of his name, and looked around nervously. He detached himself from Oliver's arm and stood up straight, trying to recover his dignity.

"So where are yeh supposed ter be?"

"Lunch if there's time. Defense Against the Dark Arts if there's not," Percy said.

"We've got time ter swing by the Great Hall. They'll be finishing up soon, though, so yeh'll have to get somethin' quick."

"Thank you Hagrid!" the boys chorused and they started off, talking merrily with Hagrid's bucket of snails swinging between them.

They reached the Great Hall without mishap, and Percy and Oliver hurried over to their table after saying goodbye to Hagrid (who had to take the snails out to the lake). As they reached the table, they saw Bran Hunter's dark head swivel towards them.

"Where have you been?" he hissed. "I've been worried sick!"

"We got lost!" Percy wailed.

"And then Percy had a breakdown!"

"But Hagrid helped us and- Hey!"

Bran put a hand to his chest, inhaling deeply, and exhaled. His whole body seemed to relax. "Thank goodness you're alright. Eat something quick; we're all almost done." He turned back to his sandwich, which looked like it had been through a war- picked at, nibbled on, and taken apart, but not really eaten. Percy slouched in shame. And here all he'd been thinking about was how much trouble he'd be in when his poor prefect was so concerned he couldn't eat!

"I'm sorry, Bran," he whispered.

"What? Oh no, don't worry! Everyone gets lost. I _still_ get lost every couple of months. Soon though, you'll know that way and barely have to think about it. Like that trick step, or the door that leads to the invisible stairs on Fridays. It'd just be bad, you know, if my two princes got lost forever on the first day." He turned back to his demolished sandwich.

Percy turned to Oliver to say something, and stopped. The other boy was devouring a sandwich like he hadn't eaten in a week.

"C'mon, Perce," he said around a mouthful. "We won't get to eat again until dinner!"

Percy dug in.

****

The rest of the week passed relatively quickly (as first weeks go) except for Potions and Tony Scarborough.

Potions was held in a dungeon that was cold all year round. Percy dreaded winter in there already. Oliver, who flew on his broomstick in any kind of weather- "Except snowstorms. Mum won't let me out."- didn't seem to care. But the worst part was Snape. He asked what bluespine was used for and snapped at Sara Proctor when she didn't know, even though Percy and one of the Hufflepuffs had raised their hands. After the fourth question (all of which Percy had known and raised his hand for), he snapped at Percy.

"Mr. Weasly, please! Do you really believe you can think for the entire class? When I've seen little evidence that there is a whole braincell among you all?" Percy and the class sat in stunned silence. "Now put your hand down. There's no reason to call even more attention to yourself than you naturally do." And he eyed Percy bright red hair before turning away and giving instructions for a simple potion. Percy and Oliver's turned out nearly perfect, but Snape didn't notice. He was too busy criticizing the Hufflepuffs- each and every one.

"Monstrously unfair!" Percy cried as they left. He hadn't spoken a word above a whisper since Snape had yelled at him. "I can't believe it! That was… that was… He deliberately made fun of me! And he didn't even notice my beautiful potion!"

"Hey, I helped!" Oliver protested.

On the other hand, Tony Scarborough was just as bad. He, however, was good-natured about it- as good-natured as teasing gets. He'd heard what Bran had said to them at lunch after he had gotten lost, and had taken to calling them 'Dui Pricipi'- Two Princes. Tony took every opportunity to speak in Italian, and regaled the first year girls with tales of hischildhood in Italy. He even gave them all nicknames. Sara was 'Usignola'- nightengale- because she sang well. This set off a bird theme, and Oliver and Percy were cursed with Duck and Rooster, respectively.

"Because you sing so sweetly, miei Dui Principi," he said to them, grinning. "Will you sing for us, Gallo?" he would ask Percy, who blushed and mumbled.

"Yeah, let's see how you like being called 'Anitro'," Oliver growled.

"Shut up, Wood," Bran snapped. "At least he doesn't call YOU 'Cacciatore!" This set off gales of laughter at the table, which was especially raucous among the upperclassmen, who seemed to have their own jokes about everything.

"Hey Tony, had your Cacciatore yet?"

This always set Bran himself into a grumbling fit. "'Cacciatore' means 'Hunter'. It's my last name, see?" he explained to the boys the first time it happened. "Besides being slightly dirty-" Percy blushed, but didn't really understand "-it's a pun. I hate puns. They're the lowest form of humor. Except for fart jokes, of course."

****

One morning, the school owl that Percy had sent his letter home with arrived back, dropping a small package onto his lap.

"Oh! It's a letter from home!"

"Cool," Oliver said between bites of toast. "Open it!"

Percy obliged him.

Inside was a small black book and a stack of letters. He decided to read the letters first. Oliver whined.

"It's polite to read the letters first," Percy insisted.

"But I wanna know what the book is!"

"Later." And he began to read.

__

Hi Sweetie,  
We were very glad to get your letter so quickly. Your father and I are very proud of you, and we hope you're enjoying Gryffindor as much as we did.  
Your friend Oliver sounds like a sweetheart, and I'm glad you've made friends already. I think it's wonderful that you're doing well with the prefects, too. It'll be good for you to know what's expected of them, in case decide to go for prefect yourself.  
We've sent a small present. It's a datebook, so you can keep your schedule nice and organized, and always know when things are. And at you can reuse it. It's enchanted to store dates for every year. The instructions are in the book.  
Love and all the Best,  
Mum and Dad  
PS. The other kids wanted to write, too, so we've sent their letters. Don't worry, the twins are clean.

"That's really nice of them," Oliver said.

"What, to check the twins' letter for hexes?" He turned to the next letter, which was written in a hasty scrawl.

__

Hey Perce,  
I gotta be quick. Good luck getting into Gryffindor! You'll love it. It's definitely the best House. Show those Ravenclaws who's the smartest!  
love Bill  
PS. Make sure you piss off Slytherin along the way!

"Bill was Head Boy," Percy told Oliver (smugly for a change). "He knows we're just as smart as Ravenclaw- he was in Gryffindor, too."

The next letter was from Charlie.

__

Hi Perce!  
Heard you got into our old House. Keep up the tradition! I suppose you'll follow Bill and be Head Boy, right? Mum sasys you've got a friend who's into Quidditch. Good for him! Make sure you support him, Perce. Us Quidditch players love support from our friends. And winning. And flying. And girls, but that'll come later.  
Anyways, Romania's great. I love dragons. And I'll have tons of news scars to scare Mum with, if I can get Christmas off. Hope to see you!  
Charlie

"Figures Charlie would talk about Quidditch," Percy sighed. "That's all he cares about. Quidditch and dragons."

"Nothing wrong with that." Oliver paused. "Hey, Percy, when I'm on the team, will you come to my Quidditch games?"

"Of course, Oliver. Don't be silly." He sipped his orange juice and picked up the next letter. It was from the twins, and alternated handwriting every paragraph. They'd both had their hands on it.

__

Hiya Percy!  
How's school? Mum was peeing-her-robes excited when she heard you got into Gryffindor.  
Did you bribe your way in or something? We thought for sure you'd end up in Ravenclaw with the other book-freaks.  
Or Hufflepuff.  
Yeah, or Hufflepuff. Anyway, we wanted to send you somethin' but Mum said NO!  
She's not fun, really.  
We'll make it up to you at Christmas if you come home.  
Promise!  
Luv, Fred + George

Percy shivered. "Maybe I'll stay here over break…."

"Why?" Oliver asked. "They sound like they miss you."

"I told you about the twins, Oiliver. They were probably trying to send me a dungbomb, or screaming mimi's or something even worse."

The last letter made Percy smile though. It was in a familiar blocky scrawl that he had seen much of over the summer.

Hi Percy!  
Mum was real happy when you got into Grifindoor. She made a cake!  
I'm real happy to, cause you tawt me how to write, and now I don't have to ask Fred or George. You know they won't write what I tell them to, and make stuff up.  
Ginny says hi, and wants you to teach her to write to. She doesn't trust Fred and George either and won't let me help her learn. She's being silly.  
Will you come home for Krismas? Mum says she'll make another cake if you do.  
Luv, Ron  
PS. What does shit mean? I heard Fred say it, but Mum washed his mouth with sope, so I don't want to ask her. George laffed, tho.  
PS. What does PS stand for? 

"Look at that!" Percy said proudly as he passed Ron's letter around so everyone could see. "My six-year-old brother! Only a few spelling mistakes and no backwards letters!" Oliver grinned indulgently. The girls cooed.

"That's so cute!"

"Percy, your brother's adorable!"

Percy sat grinning, his chest puffed out and looking like he were the one solely responsible for Ron's cuteness. Oliver choked back a laugh.

"What?" Percy snapped.

"Nothing," Oliver said innocently, and snorted as he tried not to chuckle.

******

Author's Notes: Here it is, finally. The third part of RHC. Hopefully I can get the fourth part out faster. ^_^ I will be finishing this fic; it just may be awhile between chapters. Updates will be sporadic, as I have a tendency NOT to want to type. However, I'm trying to clean up and finish thing, so maybe I can get this completed in a semi-timely manner.

With love to all who read, and to all who review,   
Thank you everyone for being patient with me,  
-Elise


	4. A Very Boring Adventure

The Right-hand Corridor

A Harry Potterfic by Elise

Rating: G. Maybe PG with the action scenes at the end, but I haven't written those yet.  
Warnings: Um…chibi-Oliver?  
Summary: Percy Weasley finally gets to go to Hogwarts. But can he stand it, with the Slytherins, an exuberant roommate, a mysterious disappearing hallway, and -worst of all- getting points off?

**Author's Notes:** Finally, chapter 4. I had some computer problems and other Issues that delayed it even though it was done, but here it is.   
As a reminder, I update sporadically at best. I want to finish this story, but my original stuff is a far, far higher priority- and I don't write often. So rest assured, I will finish this, but it probably won't be soon.

**The Right Hand Corridor**   
**Part 4- A Very Boring Adventure**

In which Percy and Oliver embark on a mission, and Oliver is bored to tears, figuratively speaking.

****

"Ooh, look!" Missy Green squealed. It was Halloween, and that evening, the Great Hall was decked out in black draperies, with heavy silver cobwebs strung everywhere. Lighting was only from the candles in pumpkins, giving the whole room a flickering, shadow-laden glow. It was all quite eerie, and Missy and Oliver loved it.

"It's like giant spiders are going to come crawling from the corners any second now!"

" Ew! No! I don't like spiders!"

"Don't worry, Mary. Oliver and I will protect you!" Missy said, making a fist at an imaginary spider. "Right Oliver?"

"Yeah!"

Percy was just glad his little brother Ron wasn't there to hear about spiders- he was terrified of them.

Part way through the feast, Oliver leaned toward Percy. "Remember when we got lost on the first day of classes?"

"I've been trying to forget," Percy snapped, "but yes I do. Why?"

"Doesn't this remind you of that spooky hallway we saw?"

"Why, yes. Yes it does."

"Doesn't it make you want to go down there and find it again? You know, check it out, see where it goes…."

"Not particularly." Percy sipped his pumpkin juice. "You're not thinking what I think you're thinking…."

"Yup! We're going to find that hallway again!"

"No, we are not! We could get into tons of trouble. We'd get points taken off or get detention or…."

"Not if we don't get caught."

"Oliver! We are not going and that's final." Percy turned away to watch the enchanted tumbling pumpkins that were currently forming a pyramid.

****

"You know I'll win eventually, Perce."

"Shut up, Oliver."

****

"You know you're curious."

"No."

****

"There could be treasure, or a monster, or a way into Hogsmeade, or-"

"I said quiet!"

****

"I knew you'd do it, pal!"

"Shut up."

It was almost December before percy caved. Luckily, Oliver had gotten distracted by the start of the Quidditch season. Then he'd fallen into a funk when Gryffindor lost to Ravenclaw, 160 to 70. But finally, he'd managed to cajole Percy into helping him find the lost corridor.

While Oliver had immediately panned to set out for the search, Percy had different ideas.

"The library? Why are we in the library?" Oliver exclaimed.

"Because this is the best place to look for information," Percy said simply.

"Information? What'd we need information for?"

"Don't be stupid, Oliver. First we need to know where we're going."

"But we do know-" Percy cut him off.

"We do this my way, or not at all, got it?"

"All right," Oliver pouted. "What's your way?"

"Research! I want to see if there's any documentation or maps of the area. Don't look at me like that!" he snapped at Oliver's expression. "We were completely lost, remember? We don't even know which corridor leads to the branch."

"Yeah…."

"So let's try to find it here first, where it's safe and we don't have to sneak around after hours. Now, we'll start with 'Hogwarts, A History' and from there…"

An hour and a huge stack of books later, Oliver looked up at Percy, bleary-eyed and stiff from sitting.

"Percy?" he called. The redhead raised his eyes and blinked. "Perce, this is the most boring adventure I've even been on."

****

But if Percy thought making Oliver do research would put him off the idea, he was sadly mistaken. He took the few leads they found and ran with them, mulling them over before bed. He ruled out the Chamber of Secrets, the Door to the Past, the Druid's Dungeon, and the Haunted WC (which everyone knew was the out-of-order girls' room on the first floor), but had faith that it would be one of the other legendary sections of Hogwarts they'd heard rumors of.

"Do you think it leads to the Founders' Hall?" he asked Percy.

"I think that if there was a Founders' Hall, one of the former headmasters would have seen to it that it was tidied and on a main route, so that everyone could see it. It would be an important landmark. So no, I don't think there's a Founders' Hall at all."

"What about-"

"No, Oliver! We have a quiz in History of Magic tomorrow. Go to sleep, if you're not going to study!"

"You've been putting me off for two weeks, Percy! C'mon, let's start actually looking tomorrow!"

"No."

"Percy! C'mon! What if it's something good, like…." He thought quickly for something Percy would like. "Treasure, or a lost library?"

"Library?" Percy's voice wavered. "No. I mean it, Oliver!" But he had lost some of his former conviction. Oliver grinned.

****

They waited until the Hufflepuff/Slytherin Quidditch match. Although Oliver had wanted to go to it, Percy convinced him that it would be the best time.

"Half the school is at the match, and more than half the teachers," he explained, "so there's less people around to see us. I'd rather not get caught."

"But we're not doing anything wrong!" Just, wandering around the halls with no goal, looking for a secret passageway that-" Oliver stopped when he caught Percy's glare.

"I'm going back."

"Oh, no you're not!" Oliver said, grabbing Percy's collar before he could turn and run back to their dormitory. "We're in this together."

"Oliver-" He paused. "What was that?"

"What?"

"Someone's coming!" he hissed. "Hide!" He grabbed Oliver's arm and dragged him into a doorway, which was fortunately not locked (like so many of the other closets- upperclassmen had a disturbing tendancy to get caught kissing in certain ones).

They waited a long moment for the footsteps to recede, and Oliver stuck his head out the door. "All clear."

"Good. I bet that was Filch. He doesn't seem like a Quidditch fan."

"Poor sod. Maybe that's what's wrong with him."

"Don't start, Oliver," Percy scolded. "I don't want to get caught. Let's go."

"Yeah, it won't take long for Slytherin to flatten Hufflepuff, from what I've heard of their teams."

"Oliver! Keep walking!" So he did. It didn't help their search that their only landmarks were a branching corridor and a painting of sunflowers.

"Paintings can be moved," Percy pointed out. "Just because they don't rearrange OFTEN doesn't mean that-" He paused at a window, swearing.

"What? What is it?"

"Game's over."

"Who won?!"

"Who do you think won?" Percy said irritably.

"Damn. I was hoping for Hufflepuff. Now Slytherin will start catching up again." He pouted for a moment. "I guess we should get back, huh?"

"Thank goodness," Percy muttered. "I've had enough slinking around…."

"Oh, come off it," Oliver said jovially. "You know you're enjoying yourself. It's exciting!" Percy flushed.

"It's… a little exciting," he admitted, but quickly regained his composure. "Still, I have no desire to get caught roaming around the castle without permission."

"Yeah, yeah. So you've said." Oliver rolled his eyes and said, "Let's go back. I'm sure you'll find some homework to keep us busy for the rest of the day."

****

Later, they sat in the common room, working on papers for Defense Against the Dark Arts ("C'mon, Perce, let me see it for just a minute." "No. Do your own work!"). Most of the Gryffindors were doing their homework as well, since their House hadn't played that day and only the big Quidditch fans went to non-House games. Robert Davies had of course dragged the team, and they sat in a corner, working out strategies for after Christmas break.

"That'll be me next year," Oliver said wistfully.

Percy nodded absently and put the final touches on his essay. "There! Done!"

"Cool! Let me read it!"

"No. I told you, do your own work!" Suddenly the light from the fireplace was blocked by five small forms.

"Hey girls," Oliver said. "What's going on?"

"Where were you today?" Missy asked suspiciously.

"Wha'd'ya mean? We were around," said Oliver without the slightest hesitation. Percy looked up quickly.

"But you weren't in the library," Sally said softly.

"And you weren't down here," Jane added. "I was here all afternoon, teaching Sara to play Exploding Snap."

"And you're still a little… young… to be sneaking girls up into your room like Tony," Missy said.

"Tony sneaks girls up into his room!?" the boys asked together, appalled.

"Yeah, Bran says that's how he gets all his points off. He gets caught snogging." Oliver gagged and Percy turned beet red. Mary shrugged. "You didn't know?"

"That's gross," Oliver said. "Who wants to kiss girls?!"

Missy gave him a level look. "I can't wait until you hit puberty, Oliver Wood. I am going to laugh at you so hard…"

"Save it, Missy," Jane interrupted. "So where were you two? C'mon, you can tell us. Please?"

"What, do we have to tell you every time we shower now?" Oliver snapped. "Are you my mother suddenly?"

"You don't have to yell at us, Oliver!" Missy snapped back. "We're just… concerned about you." Oliver still scowled at her. "Oh, c'mon girls! Who needs these guys, anyways. I've already finished my Defense essay. A whole three feet of parchment!" And she flounced away, Jane and Mary in her shadow.

Sally looked at the boys. "She's only mad because she thinks you're doing something interesting without her," she said. "And her essay's only three feet because she writes much bigger than you do, Percy." She smiled reassuringly at him, having caught his panicked expression when Missy said her essay was three feet of parchment long. His was only two and a half. Professor Quirrell had asked for two feet on vampires, which seemed to be an obsession of his.

After Sally retreated back to her books, Sara stood regarding the boys for a moment. "I bet you were doing something fun without us," she finally said. "But since you don't want to share… Tell us after, okay? And don't get into trouble, Oliver. Percy will have a breakdown." She reached over and patted Percy's cheek fondly. "Ooh, there's Bran! I've been trying to get him to teach mewizarding songs. Later, boys!" And then she too bounced off.

Oliver shook his head. "Girls are weird," he said firmly. Percy nodded.


End file.
